Education: The Green Party has challenged both Fine Gael and Labour to say how they propose to finance education after years of under-investing by the Fianna Fáil/Progressive Democrat Government.
The call came from Green Party education spokesman Paul Gogarty TD, who said the Green Party, Fine Gael and Labour have to be "a little bit more honest" if they proposed a viable alternative that would "put paid to this sorry bunch in Government".
"Fine Gael and Labour are strong on Government but short on costings. They criticise the Government on its underfunding of education, but twice I have called for a debate on where these funds will come from, and twice I have been ignored."
Mr Gogarty said it appeared to him that Fine Gael and Labour seemed to be embarrassed every time he raised the issue.
"I would like to ask Opposition deputies as well as Government deputies to stop thinking solely about the next election, and be more farsighted if they are serious about education - I just want honesty on where the money will come from."
Mr Gogarty said a Green Party research team had calculated on the basis of last year's figures that a one cent increase in income tax would raise €540 million for education, while a comparable increase in eco-tax would raise €460 million.
He said failing to invest in early education had a huge economic cost. "With one in seven children not being able to read or write properly upon leaving primary school, we are borrowing heavily from the future, a future in which educational under-investment will cost the State money in prison spaces, social welfare payments and in lost tax revenue from poorly-paid jobs."
INTO general secretary John Carr saidresearch showing that smaller class sizes lead to improved pupil achievement. He told delegates the greatest impact was achieved by reducing class sizes early in the first few years of school, in particularly for pupils from disadvantaged areas.